Technics: Internet: Battle is on in Canada to prevent net providers overcharging 'end users'

intro to  article by Michael GeistInternet Law Columnist

Toronto Star (Feb6,2k11)

Last week, public concern with Internet bandwidth caps hit a fever pitch as hundreds of thousands of Canadians signed petitions against Internet provider practices of “metering” Internet use.

The government responded with a commitment to order the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to revisit the issue. Hours later, the CRTC announced that it would delay implementation of the decision by 60 days and review it with fresh eyes and an open mind.

While addressing the CRTC decision is a good start, Canadians will be disappointed — some even surprised — to learn that Internet “metering” is already almost uniformly in place. The “caps” are the existing and common provider limits on usage, above which you are billed extra. They are unlikely to disappear anytime soon, what ever the CRTC decides after its review.

The CRTC usage-based billing case involves the narrow question of whether large providers such as Bell can impose usage-based billing rates (metering) on bandwidth that it “wholesales” to small providers, affecting the rates they can in turn charge their subscribers. This is only a tiny segment of the market.

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A great article, I recommend you read the whole piece.  And think about the information and the overall argument, please.

-- Technowlb